My first visit to Reno: Brief reviews'n'notes

[gerisullivan]

The Purple Parrot 24-hour coffee shop in the Atlantis serves breakfast 24 hours a day, which I'm always happy to see. (I tend to have a convoluted sleep schedule and rarely seek breakfast at anything resembling traditional breakfast times.) Near midnight Thursday, I was more interested in dinner, and was pleased to discover that their late-night offerings weren't limited. The fried chicken was fresh, crispy, moist, and tasty. The service was good, too.

My previous experience with casino hotel buffets in downtown Las Vegas left me with low expectations at Toucan Charlie's Buffet and Grill when we went there for breakfast Friday. I was expecting something along the lines of an Old Country Buffet. Toucan Charlie's is several steps above that. It wasn't the best breakfast buffet I've ever had -- the $35 place in Honolulu still holds that record. Toucan Charlie's is certainly the best breakfast buffet I've had at its $12 price point. There were Mexican, Southern, and Chinese breakfast stations as well as fresh omelets, fresh pancakes, and standard hotel breakfast buffet items. The pastry and dessert counter was memorably tastier than the equivalent offerings at the $35 brunch buffet in Hawaii. Yum. The designer in me appreciated the dishes, the decor, and the fact that the sound system complemented our breakfast conversation rather than competing with it.

Rick Lindsay took me up to Virginia City and around Lake Tahoe. Wow. I'll enjoy wandering the streets, saloons, and mines of Virginia City when the opportunity next presents itself. I knew I was going to like Tahoe. I was surprised by how nearby it actually is, and, yes, it's glorious.

More later....

Comments

[kalimac.livejournal.com]

Did Kevin tell you about that place with the shrimp pan fry he's so fond of?

Tahoe!

[murphyw.livejournal.com]

The PCT runs along the TRT (Tahoe Rim Trail) for about 35 miles. It sure is nice. Have you been to Crater Lake? If you like Tahoe, it'll be a real treat!

--Bill

[galtine1.livejournal.com]

Buffets at the better properties in Vegas (anything on Strip, Locals-Favorite or with more than 3 in the group) have fairly good buffets as long as you hit them at least before the 3/4 mark for the meal being served.

The only one we won't go to any more in Vegas is the Sahara at $6.99 (or whatever it's price is now) as they tend to give that away to everyone...which drives down the quality to disgusting.

[(Anonymous)]

If you enjoy train rides, I nominate the run from the SF Bay Area up to Reno as world-class. (The reverse direction is better accomplished with a cheap plane trip since the west-bound train started in Chicago so it's dirty and usually very late.) The scenery is gorgeous and nobody has to keep their eyes on the road during the trip. There are many switchbacks where you can see the train bending around the curve. In the late spring the Sierra snow-melt makes lovely rivulets down the mountainsides. There are several wooden tunnels that were built to keep the tracks clear from dozens of feet of snow.

-Patty

[johnnyeponymous.livejournal.com]

Reno is a city of Coffee Shoppes. I love them myself.

Have you read my two Ma Vie en Reno articles? I talk about Reno as a city of eating.
Chris

[smofbbs.livejournal.com]

Most of what I know about Reno I learned whilst channel-flipping past the police procedural docudrama Reno 911....